- Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24 (23.976Hz)
- Audio Codec: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese
- Region: A (B?C?)
- Rating: PG-13
- Run Time: 100 Mins.
- Discs: 1 (1 x Blu-ray)
- Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: November 1st, 2011
- List Price: $24.99
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BestBuy.com:
Purchase Scrooged on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:3/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(Screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG thus are meant as a general representation of the content and do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
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The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Serving as an update to the classic Charles Dickens tale, Bill Murray stars as television executive Frank Cross, the meanest, most selfish man on Earth. Christmas may be around the corner but Frank wants ratings, ratings and more ratings! And he’ll stop at nothing to gain these ratings, even if it means having his entire staff work Christmas Eve. In hopes of making Frank sees his dastardly ways, three spirits representing Christmas Past, Present and Future appear. They take Frank and show him how he needs to change in order to make him achieve redemption. But is it too late for Frank? What results is quite a funny spin on a famous tale.
It’s been quite sometime since the last time I’ve seen Scrooged, some 10 years I’d say. Unlike other holiday-themed films that haven’t aged well (I may get some guff for this, but while the film is still good, Home Alone just isn’t as enjoyable as it was when I was a child), Scrooged has maintained its charm. A majority of said charm and humor comes from the lead actor Bill Murray. Murray is one of that actors that can just handle a wide range of material, yet still make it enjoyable. Whether drama, courtesy of the excellent Lost in Translation, or other comedy like Ghostbusters, he knows what he’s doing. Other cast members like Karen Allen as Frank’s one true sweetheart Claire Phillips and John Forsythe as Lew Hayward both add something entertaining to the film. Allen brings in that sweetness that only she can while Forsythe is just entertaining to watch.
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
For a film roughly 23 years old, you might think that there’s no way this could possible look great. I’m happy to report that Paramount’s latest catalogue offering has quite the splendid video transfer. The film’s color palette, while featuring a handful of darker sequences that do lose some detail, has a very natural look and feel to it. Grain levels are kept in check only occasionally being noticed. Contrast levels are accurate as are flesh tones. Nothing has been overly pumped up giving us a very realistic looking image. No notice of print damage or video noise meaning the print has held over the years. Detail is also quite strong, in particular facial close ups (see screen capture above). All in all, this is a solid catalogue effort from Paramount.
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Scrooged arrives with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, one that is suitable for the material at hand. Atmosphere is fairly solid, in particular during the opening office moments where background dialogue and other happenings can be readily heard around us. LFE isn’t overly forceful at times, but instead gives us a nice response in particular during the film’s final sequences. Dialogue is well reproduced via the front channel. I didn’t notice any drop out either. Musical selections are peppy easily adding to the film’s charm. Dynamics are spot on giving us a sense of aural direction, especially during the North Pole moment. This is a fine effort that all but accompanies the aforementioned video.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
The supplements are the only area where this disc falls short. They’re presented in standard definition unless otherwise noted:
- Trailer [HD] – 2:37.
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:3/5]
While other holiday films may have not held up their charm, Scrooged certainly has. With fine video and audio, this one comes recommended for those looking for a funny film heading into the holidays.
Additional Screen Captures
[amazon-product]B005HMHOZU[/amazon-product]
BestBuy.com:
Purchase Scrooged on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:3/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
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